scholarly journals Meditative Attention to Bodily Sensations: Conscious Attention without Selection?

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kranti Saran

Prominent figures in the philosophical literature on attention hold that the connection between attention and selection is essential (Mole, 2011), necessary (Wu, 2011; 2014), or conceptual (Smithies, 2011). I argue that selection is neither essentially, necessarily, nor conceptually tied to attention. I first isolate the target conception of selection that I deny is so tightly coupled with attention: graded intramodal selection within consciousness. I analyse two visual cases: analysis of the first case shows that there can be attention without a connection to tasks or action; analysis of the second case shows that there can be attention without a phenomenal foreground/background structure. Finally, I extend the argument into the domain of the body by considering a form of meditative absorption in body sensations to recapitulate the conclusions drawn from the two visual cases.

2008 ◽  
Vol 88 (7) ◽  
pp. 832-840 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirsten Ekerholt ◽  
Astrid Bergland

Background and Purpose The aim of this study was to clarify patients’ experiences of breathing during therapeutic processes in Norwegian psychomotor physical therapy (NPMP). Subjects and Methods A qualitative approach was used based on interviews with 9 women and 1 man aged between 41 and 65 years. The data were analyzed with the aid of grounded theory. Results Three categories were identified from the participants’ experiences: (1) “Breathing: An Incomprehensible and Disparate Phenomenon,” (2) “Breathing: Access to Meaning and Understanding,” and (3) “Breathing: Enhancing Feelings of Mastery.” Initially, breathing difficulties and bodily pains were described as physical reactions that seemed utterly incomprehensible to the participants. Communication, both verbal and nonverbal, between the patient and the physical therapist was described as vitally important, as was conscious attention to occurrences during the treatment sessions. The participants learned to recognize changes in their breathing patterns, and they became familiar with new bodily sensations. Consequently, they acquired new understanding of these sensations. The feeling and understanding of being an entity (ie, “body and soul”) emerged during therapy. The participants increased their understanding of the interaction between breathing and internal and external influences on their well-being. Their feelings of mastery over their daily lives were enhanced. The therapeutic dialogues gave them the chance to explore, reflect, and become empowered. Discussion and Conclusion In experiencing their own breathing, the participants were able to access and identify the muscular and emotional patterns that, linked to particular thoughts and beliefs, had become their characteristic styles of relating to themselves and the world.


2021 ◽  
pp. medhum-2019-011816
Author(s):  
Alice Malpass ◽  
Coreen Mcguire ◽  
Jane Macnaughton

Breathlessness is a sensation affecting those living with chronic respiratory disease, obesity, heart disease and anxiety disorders. The Multidimensional Dyspnoea Profile is a respiratory questionnaire which attempts to measure the incommunicable different sensory qualities (and emotional responses) of breathlessness. Drawing on sensorial anthropology we take as our object of study the process of turning sensations into symptoms. We consider how shared cultural templates of ‘what counts as a symptom’ evolve, mediate and feed into the process of bodily sensations becoming a symptom. Our contribution to the field of sensorial anthropology, as an interdisciplinary collaboration between history, anthropology and the medical humanities, is to provide a critique of how biomedicine and cultures of clinical research have measured the multidimensional sensorial aspects of breathlessness. Using cognitive interviews of respiratory questionnaires with participants from the Breathe Easy groups in the UK, we give examples of how the wording used to describe sensations is often at odds with the language those living with breathlessness understand or use. They struggle to comprehend and map their bodily experience of sensations associated with breathlessness to the words on the respiratory questionnaire. We reflect on the alignment between cognitive interviewing as a method and anthropology as a disciplinary approach. We argue biomedicine brings with it a set of cultural assumptions about what it means to measure (and know) the sensorial breathless body in the context of the respiratory clinic (clinical research). We suggest the mismatch between the descriptions (and confusion) of those responding to the respiratory questionnaire items and those selecting the vocabularies in designing it may be symptomatic of a type of historical testimonial epistemic injustice, founded on the prioritisation of clinical expertise over expertise by experience.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. e244352
Author(s):  
Snehasis Das ◽  
Naveen Kumar Gaur ◽  
Oseen Hajilal Shaikh ◽  
Uday Shamrao Kumbhar

Infestation of any dead or necrotic tissues by the larvae of flies (maggots) is myiasis. This form of habitation is not restricted to any particular tissues in the body and can occur anywhere. However, myiasis at the surgical stoma site is very rare. We present a 55-year-old woman diagnosed with metastatic carcinoma of the oesophagus who underwent feeding gastrostomy (FG). The patient later presented with worms at the FG site. We removed the FG tube, cleared all the maggots, thoroughly cleaned the wound and placed a new FG tube. Although its occurrences have been reported enough in medical history, there are only two documented cases of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy stoma site myiasis. Hence, we present the first case in the literature of cutaneous myiasis around an FG stoma site.


2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Mazzotta ◽  
Raffaele Giusti ◽  
Daniela Iacono ◽  
Salvatore Lauro ◽  
Paolo Marchetti

Introduction. Angiosarcoma is a rare cancer of the inner lining of blood vessels and can arise anywhere in the body, most commonly presenting as cutaneous disease in elderly patient, involving head and neck (H&N), especially the scalp. Pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD) is one of the available treatments in patients with advanced or metastatic disease. Common toxicities are myelosuppression, palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia, nausea, and stomatitis. Regarding PLD-related pulmonary fibrosis in an uncommon toxicity, there are few cases reported in literature. None of these occurred in angiosarcoma.Methods. This is a case report describing an elderly patient treated with PLD for advanced H&N cutaneous angiosarcoma who developed G5 pulmonary toxicity after the second PLD administration.Results. According to our data and patient clinical outcome, we believe that she passed away from fatal PLD-induced pulmonary fibrosis. This is the first case of fatal interstitial pneumonitis in a 77-year-old woman treated with PLD for angiosarcoma. The case has been reported for its rarity.Conclusions. Pathophysiology of this phenomenon is still unclear and more studies are necessary to understand the true incidence of pulmonary toxicities in patients in treatments with PLD and its mechanism.


2009 ◽  
Vol 137 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 659-663 ◽  
Author(s):  
Milan Latas ◽  
Danilo Obradovic ◽  
Marina Pantic

Introduction. A cognitive model of aetiology of panic disorder assumes that people who experience frequent panic attacks have tendencies to catastrophically interpret normal and benign somatic sensations - as signs of serious illness. This arise the question: is this cognition specific for patients with panic disorder and in what intensity it is present in patients with serious somatic illness and in healthy subjects. Objective. The aim of the study was to ascertain the differences in the frequency and intensity of 'catastrophic' cognitions related to body sensations, and to ascertain the differences in the frequency and intensity of anxiety caused by different body sensations all related to three groups of subjects: a sample of patients with panic disorder, a sample of patients with history of myocardial infarction and a sample of healthy control subjects from general population. Methods. Three samples are observed in the study: A) 53 patients with the diagnosis of panic disorder; B) 25 patients with history of myocardial infarction; and C) 47 healthy controls from general population. The catastrophic cognitions were assessed by the Agoraphobic Cognitions Questionnaire (ACQ) and the Body Sensations Questionnaire (BSQ). These questionnaires assess the catastrophic thoughts associated with panic and agoraphobia (ACQ) and the fear of body sensations (BSQ). All study subjects answered questionnaires items, and the scores of the answers were compared among the groups. Results. The results of the study suggest that: 1) There is no statistical difference in the tendency to catastrophically interpret body sensations and therefore to induce anxiety in the samples of healthy general population and patients with history of myocardial infarction; 2) The patients with panic disorder have a statistically significantly more intensive tendency to catastrophically interpret benign somatic symptoms and therefore to induce a high level of anxiety in comparison to the sample of patients with the history of serious somatic illness (myocardial infarction) and the sample of healthy general population. Conclusion. The tendency to catastrophically interpret benign somatic symptoms and therefore to induce a high level of anxiety in patients with panic disorder, confirms the cognitive aetiology model of panic disorder and suggests that it should be the focus of prophylactic and therapeutic management of patients with panic disorder.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (5) ◽  
pp. 410-435
Author(s):  
M. Mironov

Changes in the mucous membrane of the body of the uterus, accompanying cancer of the vaginal part and cervix, drew special attention after the work of Abel (see No. I), which appeared in 1888. The author studied the mucous membrane of the body of the uterus, taken from extirpated cases of 6 uterus for carcinoma portionis and in 1 case for carcinoma cervicis. "In all cases, the mucous membrane is dull," says the author (p. 279, 1. p.), To a high degree of alteration, while the mucous membrane of the cervix is ​​relatively insignificantly diseased. " These changes, as can be seen from the description of each individual case, concern both the gland and the intermediate tissue, and the first in all cases were multiplied and represented corkscrew gyrus; some of them were enlarged or contained ectases of the lateral walls and processes protruding into the lumen of the gland. Changes in the intermediate tissue in cases 1, 2 and 4 consisted in the multiplication of cells in deep layers, and here they had a short-spindle-shaped shape, small size and went in trains in different directions; in the surface layers, they were more or less round, much larger in size and resembled epitheloid cells. In addition, a nested infiltration with small, round cells (lymphoid cells?) Met in places. In the remaining 4 cases, the changes in the intermediate tissue, according to the author's description, were the same as usually in chronic inflammation (cases 5, 6 and 7) or almost absent (case 3). On the basis of these studies, the author comes to the conclusion that changes in the mucous membrane of the body of the uterus in cancer of the vaginal part and cervix have the character of sarcomatous degeneration, which in observed 1, 2 and 4-m, already reached a rather high degree of 4, in the rest, although it did not appear as sharp as especially in the first case, but nevertheless, these changes, according to the author, cannot be considered as inflammatory, but should be taken only as a more weak degree of the same sarcomatous degeneration, by analogy with the first.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 989-992
Author(s):  
Mula Ram Suthar ◽  
◽  
Manjry Anshumala Barla ◽  
Rakesh Roushan ◽  
◽  
...  

The Severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an infectious disease caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and has affected people's lives globally, since first case was detected in Wuhan, China in December 2019. The coronavirus pandemic has turned the world’s attention to the immune system, the body’s defense mechanism against disease. Concept of Ojas is well explained in all ayurvedic classics, in modern perspective it is considered as immunity (Vyadhikshamatava). Ojas is necessary for well-being of the body, and mind. In Ayurveda textbook, the epidemics and along with their management are discussed under the term of Janapadodhvansa. The preventive and curative treatments for communicable diseases of the Janapadodhvansa (epidemics) are Panchkarma (five bio-purification therapies), Rasayana Chikitsa (rejuvenation treatment), Achara Rasayana (good conducts), and migrate to the place, free from communicable diseases. The intake of all types Rasayanas leads to increase of Ojas and reduce all psychological (mainly stress and emotional) disorder, thereby causes increase immunity responses and help to fight against covid-19. Key Words: Ayurveda, Covid-19, Immunity, Janapadodhvansa, Ojas, Rasayana Chikitsa.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 1054-1062
Author(s):  
Parth Patpatiya ◽  
Soumya ◽  
Bhavya Shaan ◽  
Bhavana Yadav

In this analysis we have examined the process of the steady state laminar natural convection around heated elliptical plate with Rayleigh number 10^6 positioned inside a circular enclosure. The purpose of the numerical analysis is to analyze the behavior of isotherms, streamlines and heat transfer rate in enclosure plate system due to the variation in the position of elliptical plate (r/D =0.00, 0.05, and 0.2) and aspect ratio, where the given diameter of the enclosure is D and r is the distance between the centre of elliptical plate and centre of circle. Elliptical plate is inclined at different angles and results are summed up in relative manner. There are two cases, in first case aspect ratio a/D and b/D is varied and D is kept constant, whereas in second case aspect ratio a/D and b/D is kept constant and D is varied. Temperature difference between the enclosure and the inner body (i.e., temperature of inner body is kept high as compared to the enclosure) is maintained. Two dimensional study is followed by considering air as a fluid in enclosure. The effects of the Heat Transfer and Flow of Fluid are analyzed by the streamlines and isotherms plotted for the body placed inside enclosure. Value of local Nusselt number (Nu) is also plotted along the wall of elliptical plate and along the surface of the circular enclosure. For every aspect ratio isotherms and streamlines had been plotted. This work has been validated with various other numerical studies and was in good conciliation.


PEDIATRICS ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 95 (6) ◽  
pp. 944-948
Author(s):  
Mohammad Al Fadel Saleh ◽  
Mohammad S. Al-Madan ◽  
Hashim H. Erwa ◽  
Ivy Defonseka ◽  
Saira Z. Sohel ◽  
...  

Objective. To report the first case of human infection (infective endocarditis [IEI]) caused by Pasteurella gallinarum and to review the literature regarding IE caused by the genus Pasteurella. Setting. University hospital based. Patient. An adolescent boy who underwent successful correction for truncus arteriosus 10 years before the present illness. Results. Persistent fever, pallor, and a palpable spleen suggested IE clinically. Echocardiography documented vegetation in the conduit that was used for surgical correction. Blood cultures grew P. gallinarum and confirmed its role as the causative organism for IE in the patient. Conclusion. This case illustrates that IE may develop in a child with congenital heart disease several years after surgical intervention using material that is foreign to the body (conduit), and that such a complication may involve unusual pathogens. These observations emphasize the need for careful long-term follow-up of children with congenital heart disease even after successful surgical correction.


2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chenglong Wang ◽  
Yijia Cao ◽  
Min Zeng ◽  
Lijuan Wang ◽  
Xiaojing Cao ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Lymph node inclusions are foci of ectopic tissue in lymph nodes, which were reported in different areas of the body. However, inclusions in the mediastinal lymph node are rare. Here, we report the first case of glandular inclusion within the parenchyma of the intrapulmonary lymph node in a patient with primary lung adenocarcinoma. Case presentation A computed tomography (CT) scan showed a solid pulmonary nodule in the right upper lobe in a 44-year-old man. After a fine needle aspiration biopsy diagnosis of adenocarcinoma, lobectomy and lymph dissection were performed. Histological sections of the lung demonstrated a papillary predominant adenocarcinoma and one intrapulmonary lymph node, which displayed glandular inclusion occupying the node parenchyma. The gland inclusion was very similar to metastasis, but was formed by two layers of epithelial cells, and the abluminal cells were positive for P63, P40, and CK5/6. The patient has remained alive without recurrence and metastasis at the last follow-up before publication. Conclusions It is very important to correctly diagnose a lymph node inclusion for proper clinical management.


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